Floyd Medical Center is now awaiting a decision by an appeal panel of the Georgia Department of Community Health on their bid to open a $16.6 million open heart surgery program. Floyd’s application was denied last June, but the hospital quickly filed an appeal that was also intervened by Redmond Regional Medical Center. The appeal panel heard arguments in the case in December, January and February. A decision is expected in the next 60-90 days.

Floyd is seeking to add two new operating rooms, 6,400 square feet of new construction and 5,450 square feet of renovation space for the program. According to the original CON decision, Floyd cited a 13.6% growth over the last three years in treating and discharging patients having “diseases and disorders of the circulatory system”, as well as population increase of 4.9% expected over the next five years. However, the DCH did not feel Floyd met the objective need criteria to start a new service. Previous report

In the meantime, Redmond has won an appeal affirming their approved certificate of need to add obstetric services. With the decision, the hospital is now cleared to proceed with plans to add the new service. Floyd Medical Center filed an appeal with the Georgia Department of Community Health to overturn Redmond’s March 2018 approval decision.

“We are pleased with the state’s ruling, upholding our certificate of need to add obstetric services. We appreciate the support and approval of the Georgia Department of Community Health that enables us to expand our services and to provide families in our community a choice in obstetrical care,” says John Quinlivan, chief executive officer of Redmond Regional Medical Center.

“The approval of our CON, and the recent ruling upholding that approval, are the first of many steps. We will start working on the many components of creating a successful obstetrics program, including the addition of floor space. More details surrounding the timeline for completion will develop as we progress with the project. No specific date has been determined at this time.”

“The new service would be located in approximately 27,959 square feet, which includes 25,598 square feet of new construction on the fifth floor of the hospital, 1,106 square feet of major renovation on the fifth floor and a 1,255-square-foot Central Energy Plant. The new service will include nine Labor, Delivery, Recovery, Post-Partum rooms, one C-section room and a seven-bassinet holding nursery. RRMC will convert nine of its current medical/surgical beds to LDRP beds, thereby, not increasing its current number of CON-authorized beds (230 beds),” states the application. The total estimated cost of the project is $21.9 million funded through HCA’s reserves.

One chief difference between the new services Redmond will provide and Floyd is that mothers will labor, deliver, recover and receive post-partum (LDRP) care all in the same room for the entire length of stay. The same nurses that assist in labor and delivery will also care for the new mother and baby in post-partum. Floyd has a labor, delivery, recovery (LDR) model where mothers labor and deliver in one room and then are transferred into a post-partum room for the remainder of their stay. Different nurses care for the mother and baby in each area. Background